Cut Health Insurance for City Council?
By: Nadia Bashir
Updated: August 13, 2009
Councilman Mitch Harper hopes to cut insurance benefits for City Council members to help with budget woes. Harper proposed an amendment for the plan to city council last night. It failed to pass in a 6 to 3 vote.
A similar proposal was made to the Whitley County Council last week. It also failed. County Councilman Jim Banks says cutting taxpayer funded health insurance is a great way to show politicians are serious about being fiscally conservative.
Currently, the cost of health insurance for each member of City Council is $9K. Although not every Council member takes the health insurance option, the money is allocated into the budget. Harper says when you add up $9K dollars for nine council members over four-year terms, it is a lot of money to be saved for taxpayers.
Harper estimates about half of the members on Council currently take the insurance provided by the city. That includes Harper who says he has only taken it this year and will not be taking it next year.
Harper plans on proposing the cut for health insurance again in September.
